RT Journal Article
T1 Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Palliative Care in Cancer Patients in Spain
A1 Beltran-Aroca, Cristina M.
A1 Ruiz-Montero, Rafael
A1 Llergo-Muñoz, Antonio
A1 Rubio, Leticia
A1 Girela-López, Eloy
K1 COVID-19
K1 Cancer
K1 Ethical issues
K1 Legal medicine
K1 Palliative care
K1 Pandemic
K1 Pandemias
K1 SARS-CoV-2
K1 Neoplasias
K1 Ética
K1 Medicina legal
K1 Cuidados paliativos
AB Background: The COVID-19 pandemic outbreak has severely affected healthcare organizations worldwide, and the provision of palliative care (PC) to cancer patients has been no exception. The aim of this paper was to analyse the levels of health care provided by the Clinical Management Unit for PC in Córdoba (Spain) for cancer patients.Method: a retrospective cohort study was conducted. It analyzed the PC internal management database including all cancer patients treated in the period of 2018-2021.Results: 1967 cases were studied. There was a drop in cancer cases (p = 0.008), deaths at the PC hospital (p < 0.001), and referrals from primary care (p < 0.001). However, there was a rise in highly complex clinical situations (p = 0.020) and in ECOG performance status scores of 3-4 (p < 0.001). The pandemic was not shown to be a risk factor for survival in the PC program (0.99 [0.82-1.20]; p = 0.931). However, being female (p = 0.005), being older and having a high Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS) score (p < 0.001) could be indicators of a longer stay.Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic has presented a challenge in the management of patients requiring PC and has highlighted the urgent needs of the healthcare system if it is to continue providing a level of care which meets the needs of patients and their families.
PB MDPI
SN 1661-7827
YR 2021
FD 2021-11-15
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10668/3509
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10668/3509
LA en
NO Beltran-Aroca CM, Ruiz-Montero R, Llergo-Muñoz A, Rubio L, Girela-López E. Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Palliative Care in Cancer Patients in Spain. International journal of environmental research and public health. 2021;18(22)
DS RISalud
RD Apr 12, 2025